The Tomato Princess
by CalaveraCandiedSkull
Summary: AU Anita Fernandez Carriedo is a beautiful princess with a terrible curse - whenever the moonlight leaves the vegetable garden, she turns into a...tomato vine? Based on the ballet, Swan Lake. Romano x fem!Spain.
1. Chapter 1

A/N Hello there! I'm here with my first fanfiction (oh no!) for you all to read! Has anyone ever seen The Swan Princess? Do you like it? Did you know it was based off a ballet, Swan Lake? Did you know this story is a spin-off of it? Well, now you do! Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia or any of its characters, Swan Lake, the Swan Princess, or any of its characters. Because if I did, would I really feel the need to write this?

Once upon a time, there was a King and Queen of a beautiful, sunny land called Spain. They were both very kind, very loving people, and everyone in their kingdom simply adored them. They were blessed with everything they did in life. And then, one fine super sunny summer, they were blessed once again – this time with a daughter.

They named her Anita Fernandez Carriedo. She had hair the colour and richness of chocolate, and eyes the shape and colour of olives. She was kind, carefree, and open. Her thoughts were pure and clear, and when she smiled, the whole country smiled with her. She was the type of girl who would have been just as happy being born a peasant as a princess.

But, as it was, she was born a princess, and everyone in the kingdom loved her to pieces. Everyone – save for one man.

His name was Sadik Adnan. He was a powerful magician, leader of a shadowy, imposing organization known as the Ottoman Empire, who drew his power from the dark forces of nature. He, too, had a daughter, named Tonia. She was almost identical to Anita in size and stature, but her disposition was the complete opposite. She was selfish, loud, and lacked the ability to read the aura around her. People ignored her, brushed her off. Tonia spent her days shut away, longing for the perfect life Anita had.

Now Sadik resented Anita for being so loved, while his own daughter was shunned. He vowed revenge on the pretty young princess. He watched, and waited, and then, one night, when Anita was only six years of age, he kidnapped her.

Her parents wept and mourned for her. The whole kingdom fell to a depression for the loss of their beloved princess. But time passed, people grew older, and soon her memory faded, until she was nothing more than a picture on a dresser covered in a layer of dust.

**The Tomato Princess**

_~~~10 years later~~~_

The moonlight fell in a steady stream into the vegetable garden. Anita carefully plucked a tomato off the twisting green vine. Hanging on her slim arm was a basket filled to the brim with perfectly round, blemish-free bright red fruits. She hummed a happy tune as she worked, dancing slightly as she wandered through the seemingly endless rows of vegetables.

She glanced up at the sky. A light pink was bleeding over the horizon, and the stars were disappearing back into the night. Sunrise was almost upon her.

"Really, Anita? Picking tomatoes? You'd think with your current predicament you'd never want to eat a tomato again."

Anita glanced down at the lazy-looking woman with silvery gray hair and shocking red eyes, lounging in the dirt. "Tomatoes ate my favourite food, Gillian. Just because I turn into one every day doesn't mean I'm going to stop eating them."

And that was the sad truth of it. When Sadik kidnapped her, he'd placed her under a curse. Whenever the moonlight left the vegetable garden, wherever she was she would turn into a tomato vine, unable to move or speak, and likely to get trampled if she wandered too far. This was how she lived her life – days lying motionless on the ground, nights spent in mourning for the feel of sun on her face.

At first, life had seemed bleak. She'd wasted away her nights, devastated by her loss, growing thinner and thinner until she was waif-like and almost transparent. But time had passed, and she realized she wasn't getting any younger. Gathering her courage, she'd begun to travel around the garden. She started to eat again (the vegetables really were quite delicious) and it wasn't long before she'd met the Vegetable Girls.

Three young women who had spurned Sadik in the past, and had suffered a curse similar to Anita's, called themselves The Vegetable Girls. Gillian was a foul-mouthed, foul-tempered girl who had angered Sadik several years back. He'd kidnapped her, and the curse turned her into a fiery red pepper. There was also Francesca, a blonde French noblewoman who'd rejected his marriage proposal. She was now cursed as a celery stalk. And finally, Roderica, who'd annoyed Sadik in his youth, and had been here since she could remember, cursed as a carrot. (His magic was very feeble at that point in his life.)

At first, Anita had laughed at their predicament. Spending life as various vegetables would seem rather comical, wouldn't it? Until you started looking ahead into your bleak, directionless future. It was quite a sobering thought.

"Well, my little princess. How is life today?"

Try as she might, Anita could not ignore Sadik's drawling tone, nor the shuffling, dragging footsteps of heavy boots coming behind her. She groaned and turned to face her captor. "What do you want?"

"Merely the answer to the same question he's been asking you for about five years now." Tonia stalked up beside her father, a sneer besmirching her otherwise pretty face. "Think _real_ hard, _Princess Anita_."

"No." Anita stated quietly and flatly. "I will not marry you."

It had started quite a few years back. Sadik had decided that an even more perfect form of revenge would be to marry Anita, triumphantly return to Spain and take it as his kingdom. Anita, of course, refused flat-out. That didn't stop him from asking the same question every time he came to visit her.

"Yeah, you tell him, Anita." Francesca sauntered up. "That's now the, uh, second woman whose rejected you, isn't it?"

For a second, Sadik's face contorted. He looked as though he might kill. Then his lips stretched into a grin. "And look where it's landed the both of you."

Sunlight spilled over the mountains. Anita gasped. Francesca let out a moan before collapsing on the ground. Anita soon followed suit, a sigh escaping her lips moments before they were sealed over, and her thoughts became sluggish.

Tonia snickered at the pitiful tomato vine, lying motionless on the ground next to the celery stalk. "It's a good thing Daddy never lets you guys rot," she sneered, before flouncing away.

The tomato vine could do nothing but lie there, and wish that she could.

A/N ARGH yes, so now you have read the twisted mind of me. Please review and PLEASE help me improve my writing. I know it can be better but I need your help! All you have to do is push the button!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N What's this? We get to meet Romano? Hooray!

Disclaimer: If I owned Hetalia OR the Swan Princess OR Swan Lake, would I really feel compelled to write this?

Prince Lovino yelled out loud for the 127th time that morning. His maid knew, because she'd been keeping a tally in her notebook.

Lovino Romano Vargas, second son of the King of Italy, was a particularly foul-dispositional young boy. His brother, older than him by three minutes, had gotten everything a prince deserved leaving Lovino with nothing. (It wasn't actually that bad. Lovino just loved to stretch the truth.) He had had some fairly bad days in the past, but the old nursemaid was starting to think today might set a record.

"I'm going riding." Lovino stormed into the stables.

"Where?"

"Out."

"Why?"

"Because."

"I think your father might like to know..."

"Why would he care!" Lovino exploded in the old woman's face. "I'm going to go out riding far, far away from here. So far, that none of you will ever be able to catch me."

He jumped on his horse, and spurred it out into the bright sunshine. The old lady sighed. He might have looked almost handsome, were it not for the cloud of smoke trailing behind his head. She wondered what had happened that made him so on edge...

Lovino was not a happy camper.

Now that he was riding on his horse as fast as he could go, and getting blisters on his thighs, he was starting to wonder if this was really a good idea after all. That was the way things always seemed to go for Lovino – such a brilliant idea at the time, later on, a complete disaster.

Of course, there was no way he could turn and head back home now. Not with a dramatic exit like the one he'd had. And if his father wanted to see him? Well, it was his own damn fault his own son didn't love him.

Lovino slowed his pace. It wasn't like anyone was going to come after him anyways.

Having nothing better to do, he decided to dwell on what had made him so angry that morning. His day had started as usual. His older brother, Feliciano, had burst into his room wearing next to nothing and demanded a good morning hug. A bleary Lovino had continued his morning yelling at anything he could, including inanimate objects, because he felt so tired.

Then the King had called a meeting to announce Feliciano's engagement to the potato bitch. Then he had to listen to the potato bitch complain about how her missing sister for an entire hour. Then he went to go find some tomatoes. There weren't any. Then he blew a gasket.

Now that he looked back, his day really wasn't that bad. Well, not any different from normal. So why had he snapped the way he had?

It must have been something his dad said at the meeting. Yeah. That was it.

The sun was almost setting by the time he decided to turn around.

Unfortunately for him, he had not been paying attention to where he was going, and now found himself completely lost as to where to go.

Sighing, he turned his horse around and it began to trot. Then it began to buck, and kick, and before Lovino even knew what was happening, he was lying face down in the mud.

"FUCK!" he screamed. "What the fuck was that, you fucking bastard horse! The hell with you! Fucking hell..."

Then his eyes fell on the horseshoe, lying silver on the ground.

"...you threw a fucking shoe?"

The horse glared indignantly at him.

"Fuck this." Lovino sat up. "Fuck this, fuck everyone! I'm done. I am fucking done!" He kicked the horseshoe, causing pain to shoot up his leg. "FFFFUUUUUCK!"

He spun on his heel and stomped away. He didn't fucking need a horse to get back to Italy anyway.

His travels brought him across the road. To a wooden fence. He eyed the area. "What the fuck is this?"

It seemed to be a vegetable garden. His eyes widened. His mouth watered. Because if there was a vegetable garden, which could only mean...

Tomatoes.

"FUCK YEA!" Lovino leapt over the fence and raced through the garden, his eyes scourging the area for a sight of his favourite, juicy red food. A single vine lying on the ground caught his attention.

"Tomato, tomato..."he sang softly reaching down to pluck one just as the sun disappeared behind the mountains.

Before Lovino could to anything else, the vine began to shift. His jaw dropped. The vine was twisting, rising, turning into a...

a...

girl?

"WHAT THE FUCK!" Lovino screeched. "WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK! HOLY FUCKING SHIT MOtherfu..." his voice died away as he fell onto the ground in a complete faint.

"Well that's not good," Anita observed.

A/N Yay the lovers finally meet! And the story can actually get going now, haha.

I have a few other Hetalia fairytales in my mind, but I'm not sure if they're worthy of putting on paper. Boost my morale by hitting that button. You know the one.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N OMFG I am so incredibly sorry that this took me so long to update. A horrid concoction of math homework, Katekyo Hitman Reborn, and writers block created this delay. I cannot even begin to apologize. And I apologize in advance for the relatively short chapter!**

**My friend had been bugging me to watch Reborn for about 2 years now, so I finally gave up and said FINE I'll watch it and it starts really boring but then it gets really good and then it gets really boring again. It's stupid. Please enjoy this chapter while I watch the next episode.**

**Disclaimer: Hetalia or The Swan Princess or Swan Lake ****DO NOT BELONG TO ME**

Lovino awoke to the sound of girls chattering. This caused his insides to squirm uncomfortably, because it confirmed all the crazy things he remembered happening.

"What's this, Anita? _Mon Dieu_, he is adorable? Can I have him?"

Lovino yelled and sat up straight. A pair of blue eyes framed by blond curls was right over top of him. "What the hell? Don't you know about personal space?"

"No," the creepy lady giggled before being pushed over.

Lovino stared up at his saviour. Green eyes, brown hair...he stiffened. "You," he hissed.

"Yes, me." She smiled brightly at him. "The one who you almost ate."

"Of course I almost ate you! You were a fucking tomato! Listen up; I wanna know what exactly the hell is going on here!"

"No, you don't." Another voice from the back of the room spoke up. "Go home, before it's too late, and you are seduced by one of the Bad Girlfriend Trio."

"Shut up Roderica!"

"Yeah, like you don't think he's gorgeous!"

"Back off, Francesca! I want first dibs!"

Lovino groaned. _I'm trapped in a room with four horny chicks_, he thought dully. _Most men would kill to_ _be in my position_.

But Lovino found himself less than thrilled with this new arrangement. And so, he stood up and made to leave.

"Wait!" Anita cried, "You can't leave yet! We need your help!"

"Find someone else to help you." Lovino made for the door.

"At least tell me your name."

He sighed, and turned. The tomato girl was staring at him with wide eyes. "Lovino. Prince Lovino Romano Vargas of the Kingdom of Italy."

Gillian gasped. "Ah! Anita! He's a prince! That means he can definitely help us!"

Lovino looked at the one called Anita. "Just because I'm a prince..." he murmured softly. "No. No way am I going to help you."

"All right then..." Anita let out a sad sigh and looked down; Lovino was almost out the door when he heard it.

"...Lovi-tan."

"What the fuck did you just call me?" He spun on the spot.

"Lovi-tan." Anita giggled. "Prince Lovi-tan. Aha! ~ It fits so perfect for you!"

Lovino let out a strangled cry. "I don't believe this," he muttered. Anita was dancing around. "Ahahahaha~ Lovi-tan, Lovi-tan, my tomato prince Lovi-tan! ~"

"Why the hell am I a tomato prince?"

"Because you're face is so red, you look like a tomato, it's so adorable!"

Lovino didn't know what he wanted to do more – strangle her or kiss her.

No. No he didn't want to kiss her. Where the hell had that option had come from. Not like he was thinking is anyways. Nope. Not at all.

SO he chose the other option.

"Aah! What are you doing? Get off me!"

"I'm gonna fucking kill you!"

"Get your hands off Anita!"

"_Mon Dieu!_ Darling prince! What are you doing to darling Anita!"

"Fools..."

The immediate cloud of shouts and shrieks following Lovino's attempted murder of Anita was more than the young prince was willing to handle. So he broke himself away and made an escape for the door. He was halfway through the garden when a ringing voice made him stop in his tracks.

"Lovi-tan, _wait!_"

Anita stumbled a little as she caught up with Lovino. Chest heaving, she gasped out, "Don't you want to know anything about us?"

Lovino stood there, with his back turned in silence. Several excruciating moments passed, before he turned to face her.

"No. I really don't want to know."

Her whole face fell.

"But since you seem so concerned to tell me, I guess there isn't much I can do to stop you, is there?"

Anita started, looking up; staring at Lovino's averted eyes. _They're so brown_, she thought. _Like two swirls of dark_ _chocolate._

And so she told Lovino her story. How she managed to get here. How Sadik had placed an evil curse on her. "And the only way I and the rest of the girls can be saved from this curse is to have someone of noble blood pledge a vow of everlasting love to one of us."

Lovino blinked. "And you want me to do that...?"

"Well, yes." Anita had the good sense to blush before she pounced on him. "Oh, please say you'll do it!" Please, Lovi-tan? _Pleeaasee?"_

Lovino made a face_. I am incapable of fighting back against that drawn-out please in that incredibly sexy Spanish accent_, he thought resignedly. "All right, fine. FINE! I'll try. I can't guarantee full results, though." He mumbled.

A smile grew on Anita's face that was so large; it may well have cracked her face in two. "YES! Oh Lovi-tan, I love you! I love you!" And without warning, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly on the mouth.

Lovino swayed on the spot a bit and Anita pulled away. He could feel the heat rising to his face at record speed. She grinned even wider, if possible. "Hee! ~ Now you really look like a tomato!"

Lovino stayed in that spot for another full five seconds before turning on the spot and stomping across the garden, blushing furiously as he did so. He leapt over the fence with one hand, marched over to where his horse was glaring at him, jumped on his back, and took off at full speed in the direction he came.

Anita watched his trail of dust with smiles in her eyes. "He's gonna save me," she murmured.

"Who's he?" whispered a voice in her ear, as something hard hit the back of her head and everything went black.

**A/N OOOH CLIFFIE! Hopefully that made up for the incredibly short chapter and long time to update. Forgive me! Story actually evolves from here on, I promise!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N ...Another week has passed. I AM SO SORRY that it takes me a while to update. Math is a bitch. It'll be done forever in February, though! So please, read and review whilst I do homework DX**

Julius was beginning to feel awfully worried about his oldest son. He hadn't appeared for quite a few days now, and the old king was beginning to wonder if the young prince had left for good.

It was hard on him, showing affection for Lovino. It wasn't that he didn't love the boy, he really did, it was just...loving Feliciano was so much easier. Giving Feliciano compliments was so much easier. And Lovino was just so difficult sometimes.

Lovino disappearing wasn't a rare thing, but he was usually back for dinner that evening. Julius now wondered if perhaps some particularly cruel comment had been passed unnoticed by anyone else, but had affected Lovino somehow. He wouldn't have been surprised.

Now worried out of his mind from too much thinking, Julius ran over to his guard to inquire about the young prince.

"Have any of you heard from Lovino?"

"No, sir. The Prince hasn't been seen since two days ago."

"Awesome." Now all Julius could think about was Lovino.

He'd go play some guitar. That would help.

Then, with a great clatter and flourish, the doors to the great hall flew open, and in strode Lovino.

Only, he didn't quite look like Lovino. His shoulders were less hunched, he seemed to walk a little straighter, and there was a look of certain confidence on his face that Julius hadn't seen since he was a little boy. And that singular curl, the sole cause of teasing when he was younger,

"Lovino!" the old king bounded forward. "What happened? You look so different!" He leaned in very close, and said, in a rather loud conspiratorial whisper, "Did you get laid?"

Lovino blushed heavily. "Get off Father. I have news."

Even his speech pattern was different.

"I am officially announcing my engagement to the Princess of Spain!"

Anita's eyelids fluttered open. Groaning, she attempted to rub her eyes, only to find that they were bound behind her back. Struggling, she glanced up and caught sight of a masked man standing over her.

"Good evening, my little tomato."

"You!" Anita gasped. "What have you done?"

"Anita!" the voice of Francesca wafted her way. "Don't listen to a word he says!" Anita twisted around to see her friends, bound and lying on the ground few feet away from her.

"You bastard!" She whirled around to face Sadik. "What have you done with my friends?"

"Oh, nothing yet." A sly sneer grew on his face. "But I can't guarantee it will stay that way." Anita scowled. "All you have to do..." he leaned down, "Is tell me who your lovely Prince Charming is."

Anita felt her blood run cold. "No," she whispered. "You bastard, don't you dare touch him!"

Sadik's smirk grew wider, if possible. "Oh, my," he said. "I do love it when you get feisty, dear." He tickled her chin. She jerked away, never once breaking her death glare. "But why choose him, when you could just as easily have me?"

"I will never choose you!" Anita spat on the ground.

Sadik slapped her. "Don't get saucy with me, wench," he snarled. "You have no idea what you are getting in to."

"I don't care. Kill me, then! There are worse things you could do to me."

"Oh, and I'm sure I can imagine quite a few-"

"His name is Lovino."

Anita whipped around, staring wordlessly at Roderica. Gillian and Francesca were looking at her with identical looks of disgust on their faces. Sadik began to grin again.

"Prince Lovino? Of Italy?" He began to laugh maniacally. "Oh, but this is too good! He is a fool! I don't have to kill him!"

"What are you going to do to him?" Anita began to shake.

"Tonia!" Sadik called his daughter in. Anita gasped. Tonia had styled her hair exactly as Anita did, and was wearing a dress mirror to hers. They looked identical. She doubted even Sadik could tell them apart.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Tonia," he grinned triumphantly, "go show our little Prince Lovino how much _Anita_ loves him."

Anita began to scream as Tonia walked out the door. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. Sadik turned to her. "Shut up!" he roared, brining his fist down as he knocked her unconscious again.

Anita's last thought were of Lovino. Of his hair curl, and hazel eyes. _Please, be safe_.

_My Lovi-tan._

"What do you mean, she doesn't exist!"

Lovino could not believe his ears. What the hell did his foolish old man think, saying Anita was dead? "I'm telling you, she was killed years ago. She has a tomb and everything!"

"But there's no body, is there?" Lovino challenged. "I'm telling you, she's fucking real! I met her! I-" His voice stopped abruptly as his hand traveled to his lips.

"Maybe he's right." Lovino glanced up to look at Feliciano. "Maybe she really was kidnapped."

"Feliciano..." Lovino whispered. Was his brother actually agreeing with him?

"Either way, whether Lovino is telling the truth or not, we have no way of proving it." Julius sighed. "Therefore, we can't announce the engagement."

"What!" Lovino was furious. "But I have to break the curse!"

"Son..." Julius looked at Lovino in pity. He might have thought he was going crazy, had it not been for the sudden bursting down of the doors to find a rather harried-looking messenger.

"The Princess of Spain has just announced that she will be making a visit here to meet her engaged, Prince Lovino, in two days hence!"

"HAH!" Lovino glared triumphantly. "Told ya, fuckers."

"How did you get this message?" Julius was completely dumbfounded.

"We passed her on the road, Your Majesty. She asked if we were from Italy, and when we replied in the positive, she demanded we run here and deliver you this message."

"That's her, all right." Lovino couldn't stop grinning. "That's her."

**A/N But it's not! No Lovino! Don't listen to the evil Tonia!**

**If anyone was wondering who Tonia is and what is up with her, she's Spain. In a sense. The dark side, you could say. You see, when Swan Lake was being performed, Odette and Odile (the bad guy's daughter) were played by the same ballerina. The phrase White Swan and Black Swan originally comes from Odette and Odile.**

**Super special awesome thanks to all my reviewers! You are the reason I get up off my lazy ass to write this story! I love you all! **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N WAAH Another long time between updates. I'm starting to think this will become habit. Eek. **

**Also, before we begin, I would like to say thank you to all my reviewers! I less than three all of you!**

**Let the fail chapter begin...**

Francesca had her head on her hands as Gillian paced angrily. The night was dark, but each could still make out the tall dark tower that their best friend had been trapped in.

"I don't believe this!" the albino growled, kicking the ground. "We can't just _not_ go save Anita!"

"We have no choice," replied Francesca in a hollow voice. "What are we gonna do? We can't get inside. The only way in is straight up the wall."

Gillian growled, steaming as she glared up at the tower. After Sadik had knocked Anita unconscious for the second time, he had locked her at the highest level of the tower, without any way for anyone to get her down unless they could fly. Still held by ropes, Gillian and Francesca had struggled until sunrise, at which time they collapsed on the ground. When they woke at dusk they were delighted to learn that their bonds had fallen, and were no longer holding them. However, they had still not yet managed to find a way to free Anita.

"This is all your fault!" Gillian whirled on Roderica. "Why did you tell Sadik about the prince!"

"Because he was going to kill us all," Roderica replied evenly. "And because I'm a coward, and Sadik scares me."

Francesca sighed. Although Anita, Gillian, and she herself had grown very close over their years in the garden, Roderica had never really connected with them. In fact, the young woman seemed annoyed by all of them. So, now that they were down to this, the Frenchwoman didn't really see why Gillian was so surprised.

Said albino had now returned to pacing. "There's gotta be something we can do to save her." She said, mind working overtime. "If Lovino breaks the spell on Anita, he breaks it on all of us." Her eyes traveled back up to the small window at the tower. "If there was only some way we could get up there..."

Suddenly, Francesca started. A crazy thought began to cross her mind. "Maybe we can't..."

Gillian glanced at her.

"But Gilbird can."

Gillian stared, dumbstruck for a moment, before a large grin grew, threatening to split her whole face. "OF COURSE! Oh, Franny, you fucking _rock_!"

Gilbird was a small yellow chick that had flown over the mountains to their garden several years back. Gillian had taken an instant liking to it and named it Gilbird. Since then, it had randomly lied over at the chilli pepper patch, occasionally flying over to sit on Gillian's head.

Francesca watched in utter joy as Gillian dashed over to where Gilbird was undoubtedly sleeping, before bouncing back, complete with fluffy yellow chick on her head.

Mere minutes later, the order was given, and a little speck flew up to the uppermost window.

Roderica watched the two women watch the bird in silence. The never-ending piano was playing in her head, a sad melody of doom for these doomed friends of hers. Didn't they know no plan against Sadik would work? Even now, as a rope was tossed out the window and they began to climb, they were only climbing to their doom? Even as they clambered trough the window? Even as they disappeared, only to reappear minutes later out the hidden door in the wall, Anita in tow?

Oh, wait. Maybe they weren't so doomed after all.

"Well, who would have known that there was a hidden door in this wall?" mused Francesca. Gillian angrily stamped her foot. "So we went all the way up there for nothing?" she shouted.

Anita rounded on Roderica. "_You!_ You are the filthy traitor who told that monster about my Lovi-tan!" She ran a hand through her hair, agitated. "Why did you guys even rescue me?" she moaned. "Tonia is going to Lovi's house, and he's going to think it's me, and it's all so messed up!"

"What if you can get there first?" encouraged Gillian.

"_Oui!"_ Francesca joined in. "Gillian is right! If you can get to the castle in time, you can still save Lovino! And free us all!"

Anita nodded slowly. "Okay," she said, although uncertain. Then, her expression cleared. "Alright! _Vamos a la casa de_ _Lovi-Tan_!"

The Vegetable Gilt trio smiled. They were officially in business.

Roderica sighed. _Scratch that last thought_, she thought grimly. _We're doomed_.

"So, Lovino, how should we prepare for your upcoming marriage?"

King Julius was feeling incredibly tentative around his young son. He just wasn't used to seeing Lovino so...so r_esponsible_! Well, whoever this Spanish princess was, he would be sure to thank her.

Lovino, meanwhile, had his head in his hands. "I can't fucking decide, dammit!" he shouted. A vow of everlasting love, Anita had said. But how could he do that? There had to be some way to make everyone in the kingdom hear what he had to say.

Of course, his unresolved feelings for Anita were not helping the situation at all. Ever since that...that _kiss_ (it pained him just to think about it) Anita was all he could think about. However, he was sure that he wasn't in love with her – love was an emotion for pansies. All he wanted to do was break the curse, so that he could eat tomatoes again without thinking about eating _her_ – in more than one way.

But then if he wasn't in love with her, how was he supposed to break the curse?

Life was just so complicated sometimes.

He straightened up. "I know what to do, Father."

Julius glanced his way.

"Plan a ball. Invite everyone in the kingdom. In fact make it free."

"WHA-"

"I want everyone to hear what I have to say."

Julius was speechless as he watched Lovino stride across the room. AT the door, he turned back, hazel eyes sparkling. "Oh, and Father?"

"Y-yes?"

"Make it tomato themed."

If cement blocks could fall out of the sky and hit people, Julius was sure that would happen to him right now. He stared, dazed, as Lovino's voice echoed throughout the castle halls.

"_Tomato, mato-mato, tomato-mato paredo_..."

**A/N Fail chapter is fail. I just love Romano's Hatafutte Parade version, don't you? I've been singing it all week in class instead of doing work XP**

**...which is probably why I have so much homework. **

**Again, super special awesome thanks to all my reviewers, story alerts and favourites. You are the reason I bother posting these fail chapters!**

***Vamos a la casa de Lovi-tan = let's go to Lovi-tan's house! (Lit. Let's go to the house of Lovi-tan!)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N Waaah super SUPER late update! Lo siento! Gomenesai! I really hope you haven't given up on me!**

**Ugh. Just wait till Christmas break. I'll start a story and update every two days, I promise. **

**Thanks to all my reviewers, favourites and story alerts! You make my life! Also, If you notice any errors, PLEASE tell me because I HATE bad grammar/spelling/punctuation. Ugh.**

**Begin!~**

3:00 in the afternoon.

_Four more hours to go..._

Lovino was pacing. And pacing. And pacing some more. Feliciano watched him in the way that only bored people can, eyes' following his brother's every footstep. Things had been going like this ever since midday, when Lovino had wrenched himself awake from his siesta, and begun his endless pacing. He hadn't stopped.

Mind working a mile a minute, Lovino was going over the details of tonight over and over again. Everything had to be _perfect,_ down to the last bit of red icing on the tiramisu cake.

"Ve, Romano, tell me about Anita!"

Lovino cringed at Feliciano's use of his middle name. It annoyed him to no end. "What do you want to know about her for?"

"I got bored of watching you pace."

A sigh escaped Lovino's lips. "Well, I'm not telling you about her, dammit! You can just go guess, for all I care."

"Oh, okay," the young Italian murmured, bowing his head. His crown dipped low in front of his eyes.

Lovino eyed his younger brother. He was just so clueless...and yet, there it went, the little fluttering of affection. "All right, fine, I'll tell you." He grumbled. "Bastard."

"Yay!"

4:00 in the afternoon.

_Three more hours to go..._

Lovino could not muster up enough anger in his eyes to get through to his idiotic younger brother just how angry he really was.

"Just let me wear the goddamn crown!"

"Ve, but it's my crown! I want to wear it! And besides, don't you have your own?"

"Yeah, but it's not as cool!" Lovino gripped harder on the metal object caught between the two.

"Why do you care so much, anyway?" Feliciano whined. "If she's as nice as you made her sound, I don't think she'll really care!"

Lovino blushed a heavy scarlet. "She-she's not nice! She's overly happy all the time!" He gave one last tug, and the crown went flying into the air, landing on the floor with a heavy _clang._

"_Fratello_, it's not that I don't want you to wear the crown, because I do, but I don't think Papa will allow it!" Feliciano argued. Lovino sighed. Well, wearing the crown prince's crown when you weren't in fact the crown prince probably wasn't such a good idea anyways.

"All right, _fine_," he huffed. "I'm going to get my clothes pressed on last time."

Feliciano watched his brother leave the room. He must _really love her if he cares this much about how he looks_, he mused, giggling lightly.

5:00 in the afternoon.

_Two more hours to go..._

Lovino lay face down on his bed, hiding his unmanly blush from the world by hiding it in his pillow. His mind was working furiously about a thousand things at once.

_I don't love her, I don't,_ he thought forcefully. It was just a...infatuation, that's all dammit! Just because he couldn't get that dazzling smile out of his mind and those emerald eyes out of his heart _didn't _mean anything. And Goddamn it, he was allowed to think girls were hot, right?

And _damn_, was Anita hot. With that tanned skin, long lashes, perfectly curved body, luscious Spanish lips curled upwards at the tips into a never-ending smile – lips that Lovino knew were the greatest kissers in the entire world.

He rolled over. _Stop thinking all mushy-like, _he ordered himself. _Think of her faults. Like...Oh! She's always way too happy. And she smells like tomatoes. Ew. Oh yeah, and what's up with that accent? It sounds so strange...lilting...sultry..._

_None these are bad, are they?_

6:00 in the afternoon.

_One more hour to go..._

"NO Papa, we are NOT inviting the potato bitch! No no no no no NO!"

"Ah, but Lovino! Your _fratello_ was so looking forward to her being here..."

"I don't care! This is MY party! Those two will _NOT_ steal my thunder!"

Aggressive negotiations were so much fun.

"And for the love of God, DON'T INVITE IVAN!"

7:00 in the afternoon.

_Showtime._

"There!" Anita flung her arm out, pointing at yonder castle. "We've found it!" Silence. She glanced behind her. "Guys?"

Francesca trudged up the hill, feet dragging in the dirt. "_Mon Dieu_, Anita, why does your pernicious prince have to live so far away?"

"Yeah," Gillian chimed in, clawing her way through the bramble, "if we'd have known it would be this far away, we wouldn't have even come with you!"

Anita stuck out her tongue. "_Bobas_," she yelled. "Come on, we're almost there!" She took off at a run towards the horizon.

"Where does she get all that energy?"

"It must be _l'amour." _

Lovino watched the party all around him with silence. _Where was she?_ Already well underway, the party raged on and still no Anita. Festive Spanish tunes drifted from the choir, salsa dancing broke out everywhere. The accumulation of Spanish culture in his homeland was overwhelming, he was literally seeing red. _Everywhere. _Lovino wished she were here to see it all.

"Your Highness, won't you dance with me?" A voice came from his left, but he ignored it. Rustling satins, chiffons, ball gowns in every colour of the rainbow, save for one.

A flash of brightest red. Lovino looked up, eyes roving for the crimson material in the moving crowd.

"Looking for someone?" That voice. He knew that voice. Lovino turned slowly, and came face-to-face with olive green eyes and a sunny smile. The smile that had been haunting him since yesterday.

"Anita."

**A/N OOOOOOOHHHHH SNAP WHAT NOW**

**So yeah, I'm pretty sure most of you know exactly what happens next. XP Any good ideas for a plot twist? Mine never look good on paper.**

**Fratello – Brother in Italian**

**Mon Dieu – My God in French**

**L'amour – Love in French**

**Bobas – Silly/Idiots in Spanish**

**...but you all knew that already, didn't you?**

**Once again, super special awesome thanks to all my reviewers! You guys rock my socks! **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N SO I got really tired with this story by now. SO here is the epic ending of epic proportions!**

**For a final time, thank you to all my reviewers, story alerts, and favourites. It means the world to me.**

**ONWARD, MATEYS!**

**xXx**

Lovino spun Anita around in circles. The world seemed to disintegrate around them, leaving only shadows and blurs behind. The gentle, swaying music moved them, their feet moving gracefully, in perfect time.

Julius was watching from the corner of his eye. "I never knew your son could dance," mused a blonde woman beside him.

"No, neither did I," the older man replied, wondering where indeed the hot headed prince had taken the time to learn the waltz.

Lovino, on the other hand, was a little disconcerted. Something about Anita was missing, was it her smile? Nope, still there. She looked _exactly_ the same. He decided it must have been her distinct lack of chatter.

Maybe his memory of Anita wasn't quite the way she really was...

He shook all thoughts out of his head. "I've second-guessed myself my whole life," he muttered. "Be a _man_, man."

She glanced up. "Hmm? What was that, Lovino?"

_She didn't call me Lovi._

"Oh, nothing," he smiled slightly.

The slow song ended, and the band struck up a different tune. Gentle, piano humming, guitar strings fretting quickly, quietly. Lovino recognized it instantly, the type of music, and the type of dance. His eyes met Anita's, and he could tell from the way her ears had perked she recognized it, too.

Throwing back all of his worries, embarrassment, years of hiding, years of being closed off, Lovino ignored the fact that his face was as shining red as a tomato, he held out his hand.

"Care to tango?"

Anita smiled, almost wickedly, and grabbed his hand as the violins struck down in a fiery, passionate tune.

(A/N: If you want a background track for what they are dancing to, it's "El Tango de Roxanne" from Moulin Rouge.)

Anita whipped her head up. Gillian noticed the way her friend's eyes glazed over. "Anita? Whassup, yo?

"The tango," she whispered, lips dampening at the very sound of the word. _The tango_. The dream of every young girl in Spain, a man, a rose, and a tango.

"Ah," Francesca sighed. "Of course. Our dear Anita is Spanish; after all, she would be naturally attracted to that sort of thing."

Anita began to walk towards the captivating sound, her feet stepping in time to the music. Francesca and Gillian followed, not entirely sure where they were following to, but tempted to see where Anita would lead them.

She ended up on a balcony, looking down at the dancing figures. "Help me find Lovi," she ordered her friends, scanning the dance floor.

Francesca let out a gasp. "Oh, _non_! _NON_!"

"What is it?" Gillian and Anita ran to where she was standing, Green and red eyes followed blue ones, and were met by identical gasps of horror.

"_Mein Gott!_ It can't be!"

Anita's finger gripped the rail, hate blurring her vision. _Sadik, you bastard,_ she thought, raging. _How could you do this to me? To Lovi?_

"He's dancing with Tonia. And he thinks she's me."

xXx

All around them, bodies were spinning, in close knit formation with each other, passion and sweat dripping from their bodies. Lovino didn't bother to wipe his brow, merely allowed it to flow down his cheeks like tears. Anita spun like a professional, her red material of her dress staining against her heaving chest.

They were pushed together, pulled apart, flowing with the masses. Lovino had eyes only for his partner. And the rest of the floor watched them dance in perfect harmony, envy shining in their eyes.

The music ended with a great flourish, and Lovino pulled Anita into his arms, her hands flying around his neck, fingers curling back in his hair. Their breath mingled for a moment, as lust-filled eyes collided and chests heaved.

"Anita," Lovino barely managed to whisper, "there's something I need to say."

A horrible, beautiful grin curled on her face. "Yes, you do," she breathed in his ear. He shivered involuntarily.

Lovino grabbed her hand, and, ignoring the blush radiating on his cheeks, strode up to his father. "I have an announcement to make."

Julius eyed them, trying unsuccessfully to hide the grin tugging at his lips. "The floor is yours," he said with a flourish.

xXx

Anita ran down the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her, jumping steps and stumbling on the landing. Francesca and Gillian tried their best to follow, although they found themselves having a hard time whipping around corners at the lightning speed Anita was going.

'Slow down!" yelled the albino, but her cries fell on deaf ears. Anita's heart was echoing in her eardrums.

_Lovi, _she thought, _Lovi, please, see through her disguise._

But deep in her heart, she knew he wouldn't. She'd only known him for two days, but that somehow felt like a lifetime. She could tell, even by just looking at him (and that ridiculous curl in his hair) that he was a complete blockhead.

_Por favor. _

xXx

Lovino stared out at the crowd. Everyone was watching him, expecting him to say something. His brother watched him with hopeful Eyes. He took a deep breath.

"Ladies, gentlemen, your attention please."

He didn't know why he said that. Everyone in the room was already quiet. He could hear Anita give a muffled giggle, and tried to shoot a condescending look in her direction.

"I feel," he continued, struggling o find the right words, "that I have found someone worth marrying."

A collective gasp could be heard. Lovino resisted the urge to roll his eyes. As _if _they hadn't known this was coming.

"And her name is Anita." He glanced at her. "The Princess of Spain."

Anita smiled, and walked towards him on the platform. Several murmurs of "My, such beauty!" and "Lord, look at that smile!" could be heard.

Fighting the smile worming its way onto his face, Lovino took her hand. "I announce to you," he stated, (_God_, trying to talk like a noble was hard) "My engagement to Princess Anita Fernandez Carriedo."

"LOVI! NOOO!"

Anita, the real Anita, screamed her voice raw, pushing down the doors. Several people gasped, others shrieked. Lovino gasped.

"A-Anita...?" His voice trailed out weakly, as he turned his head to stare at the girl he'd just danced with. A girl with a grin, a wicked, horrible grin, spilling across her face like blood. A girl with half-moon crescents in her palms from digging her nails in. A girl who was not his Anita.

"Tonia, you bitch," whispered the Spanish princess before she fell, in slow motion, becoming a pile of bruised, squished tomatoes.

Lovino didn't waste any breath screaming her name. He didn't even bother to look where he was going, pushing past people, fighting his way through the crowds. He had to get to Anita. He just had to. But when his feet skidded to a halt, all he found was a pile of red pulp, followed by a rotting pepper, and a snapped piece of celery.

He fell to his knees. The blood pounded in his ears. _I...what? I was tricked. And now..._He forced the lump forming in his throat back down._ Now, because of me, they'll all...the all die. Lovino, you failure. You stupid, fucking failure._

He wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. He felt empty, hollow, like someone had taken away all the joy in his life.

The gentle rumble of the wind was becoming a steady roar on his ears. Cries of fear filtered through his mind. People were screaming. Lovino turned his head, slowly, coming face-to-face with a pair of soulless black eyes, and an ivory white mask.

"It was you," he mumbled. Hands clenched into fists. "You were the one who cast the spell on Anita. _You_ were the one who tricked me. _You_ were the one who killed her, you bastard!" Lovino launched himself as Sadik, who parried his blows easily.

"Little Italian fool," he sneered. "You can't fight me."

Tonia came up behind her father. "Perhaps we should give him one last chance to say goodbye to his beloved tomato," she whispered. Sadik nodded.

Lovino felt the heat drop from his face. His eyes glazed over, and he dropped back to his knees. A finger came down, and, more gently than he ever imagined he could touch, he stroked a piece of untouched tomato.

"Oh, Anita," he whispered. "What have I done to you?" His voice was beginning to shake, and although he knew everyone in the room could hear him in the pin-drop silence, he found himself not caring. "I failed you...I'm so sorry." He cleared his throat, this time unable to hold back the tears. "I'm not very good at, um, expressing my emotions, so you better be happy, damn tomato!" A few tears fell as shook his head, landing on the crushed pieces of pulp.

"Sentimental," came a voice from behind him, "but I'm afraid all this sweetness has given me a toothache."

Lovino whirled around before feeling a hard fist connected with his face. "FUCK!" he screamed, loud as you please. "That hurt, you bastard!"

"Good," whispered Sadik, before launching himself forward again.

His fist was inches away from Lovino's face when another set of knuckles smashed the mask on Sadik face on half.

Lovino started, the stared down at his hand, because he _knew_ he couldn't throw punches like that, even if he tried.

"That'll teach you for turning me into a pepper! Kesesese!"

"_Mon Dieu, _Gillian, must you be so coarse? Poor Lovino doesn't even know what is going on!"

Lovino stared. And stared. And STARED. Because, standing in front of him, as if nothing had even happened, was Gillian and Francesca.

"Free of ze curse!" The latter shouted. "Oh, my, I must immediately celebrate by going over and dancing with that handsome fellow with ze eyebrows!" And like a flash, she was gone.

Gillian started to follow her friend, but stopped by the young prince. "You're welcome," she grinned, before dashing off to dance with some invisible guy.

Leaving behind a very dazed-looking, but still very much alive Spanish lady.

"Anita," mumbled Lovino. She glanced up. A smile grew on her face, wide and trusting. _That _was the smile Lovino remembered from the vegetable garden. The smile he ultimately fell in love with.

He threw himself at her.

"Ouch! Ahaha, hi Lovi, I missed you too, ow, haha..."

It was a very good thing Anita had started her constant stream of chatter, because if Lovino had heard the collective "Aaaawwwwwww..." that shot through the audience, he probably would have killed them all.

But, as luck would have it, he was too busy embracing his newfound love to hear any of it.

xXx

And, so with love and laughter, the lost princess was finally found. She and Lovino traveled home to see her family, who were so overwhelmed at her reappearance on the arm of a scowling Italian man that the fell over. Feliciano married his potato princess, and Lovino happily handed the kingdom over to him, because now he had a whole vegetable garden to take care of. He and Anita ended up with seven kids, one for every chapter in this story, all who loved tomatoes almost as much as they loved swearing. And of course they lived happily ever after, but the point, ladies and gentleman is that they lived.

**THE END**

**A/N ENDING LINE TOTALLY STOLEN FROM "EVER AFTER"!**

**So, the story has come to a close. (finally...) I hope at least one person enjoyed it. Some of you had really good suggestions for a plot twist, thank you for that, but they were all so good I didn't want to butcher them with my horrid, rushed style of writing. **

**So, all reviewers and story alerters and favouriters, thank you for giving this story a chance! It really meant a lot, and helped boost my morale to make each of my future stories better than the last!**

**This is Calavera signing out!~**


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